The march of technological progress amazes me. The power of the microchip has never seen such staggering heights and now with IP-based systems coming to the fore, we start to see audio mixing systems appearing with increasing power in progressively smaller footprints, writes Greg Bester.

As the analogue snake slowly becomes a thing of the past, which I’m sure many live audio techs are very happy about, so are outboard racks; saving the backs of loaders worldwide.

Now we have complete mixing systems that consist of simply a control surface and a stage box with remote-controlled preamps connected via CAT5 or fibre. These systems can literally transmit hundreds of channels bi-directionally, accommodate redundant systems, and route audio practically anywhere; this, and not to mention the processing power that was previously unavailable.

Avid is a company that has been on the cutting edge of digital audio for the past 20 years. Their Pro Tools HD systems are the de facto industry standard and their Media Composer / Nitris systems are steadily coming to the forefront in the digital video editing world. Of course, a digital audio recording system encompasses all of the vital components required to put together a live mixing system, namely AD/DA converters, processing, and a powerful audio routing and mixing engine.

It makes sense, then, that Avid stepped into the live sound arena with the introduction of their VENUE live mixing consoles. First produced by their former and now dissolved subsidiary, Digidesign in 2005, what made the VENUE systems great was that they integrated seamlessly with Pro Tools for multi-track recording and used the same TDM, DSP-powered plugins employed therein. This has the obvious advantage of bringing the processing power of the studio to the hands of the live sound engineer. Now if one could only overcome that silly obstacle of attaining experience and skills!

Since then there have been three versions of the VENUE system: the D-Show, the D-Show Profile, and the SC48, in descending order of size. But recently Avid announced a new addition to their live console line: the S3L System, an affordable, compact mixing system that uses the same VENUE software found on their other live mixing systems.

Overview

The S3L system is basically a compact, modular, AVB (Audio Video Bridging) networked live mixing system with the power of Avid’s new proprietary AAX plugins and HDX-powered processing engine. Of course, any system of this nature invariably includes remote and scalable remote I/O which connects to the network, and the S3L is no different. Up to 64 microphone inputs can be accommodated over the AVB protocol which is used to connect the modules throughout the system.

In addition you can record directly to Pro Tools by merely plugging into the console via your Ethernet port, a welcomed and simple to set up feature. What’s more is that your VENUE show files are cross-compatible on any Avid live system.
One of the most interesting features of this system, which will only become available in future revisions, is that the user will be able to use the control surface as a EUCON controller for Pro Tools and other DAWs. This feature reflects the wonderful cross-platform flexibility afforded to us currently in products of this nature.

A further advantage of this system is that it is hyper-compact due to its modularity, but we’ll cover that further as we proceed through the modules. There are three main components to the system, namely the S3 Control Surface, the E3 Engine and the Stage 16 remote I/O box.

S3 Control Surface

The S3 Control Surface optimises the term “compact’, coming in at 71cm x 36,3cm. It is between 3.2cm and 7.2cm thick. Basically you get a bank of 16 faders with six bankable layers and 32 OLED-illuminated, touch-sensitive rotary encoders and each channel control parameter is colour coded for quick access and adjustment.

There are 16 ten-segment LED meters with pre– and post-fader metering options. On-board I/O includes four analogue inputs; two XLR mic/line inputs and two TRS line inputs, which can be used to connect a talkback microphone, audience mics or playback devices. There are also four analogue outputs; two XLR line outputs and two TRS line outputs for connecting recording devices and near-field monitors. There is one ¼-inch headphone output as well.

To connect to the AVB network there are two Gigabit Ethernet AVB ports featuring latching etherCON connectors on the rear of the surface. There are also two USB 2.0 ports exclusively for connecting a keyboard and mouse, one ¼-inch TRS footswitch port, two console light ports and a Kensington lock slot.
There is no display built into the surface but why that is will be covered shortly.

E3 Engine

The E3 Engine is the core of the S3L mixing system. This 2U rack unit runs the VENUE software and acts as the mission control centre for the entire system and the 32-bit floating point HDX-powered system that powers the AAX plugins is also housed there.

The E3 can accommodate 24 aux busses, LCR, eight mono matrixes and eight VCA groups. Channel processing includes a four-band parametric EQ on every input and output, 16 graphic EQs and full dynamics processing on all channels.

Two-track recording is offered via standard USB flash drives connected to the on-board USB 2.0 ports however for multi-track recording, the E3 is connected directly to the Ethernet port of your computer to record/playback up to 64 audio tracks over the AVB network. No audio interface is required.

Additional I/O includes four XLR mic/line inputs, four XLR line outputs, four channels of AES3 input and output (XLR), GPIO (two in/two out), and word clock input and output. There are three Gigabit AVB ports, one ECx Ethernet port for wired/wireless remote control and one DVI video port. This is where your monitor will connect for full graphic representation of all console parameters. Finally, there are four USB 2.0 ports; two on the rear, one on the front, and one internally.

One thing to note about AVB is that all devices on the network are auto-discoverable and auto configurable. That means that when you plug any of the modules into each other, the system recognises them all and sets up the network automatically. AVB is designed to be future-proof and expandable which means that the S3L is likely to see much expansion and upgrade in the future.

Stage 16 remote I/O

The Stage 16 remote I/O is exactly what it sounds like; the stage box I/O module of the S3L system. All in all you get 16 XLR mic inputs/preamps, eight XLR line outputs and four channels of AES3 output. It is 4U in size and includes two Gigabit Ethernet AVB etherCON ports for connection to the E3 Engine and for daisy chaining up to four Stage 16 boxes, totalling 64 inputs. Regular off-the-shelf, shielded 350MHz Cat5e cable is the network transport medium of choice, achieving a maximum snake cable length of 100 metres.

The wrap

Starting at around $17 999 (+ – R177 000) for the base system and coming in at around $30 000 (+ – R296 500) for the 64 channel system, the S3L is fantastic value for money given the features that it offers. The fact that the entire system is modular and compact enough to fit into your boot makes it very appealing and I’m sure it will suit both rental companies and installations alike.

Plus you get the power of HDX-powered AAX plugins, multi-track recording with no further hardware but your laptop or PC, the robustness of the AVB network, and comprehensive connectivity and I/O in a variety of options. Avid have a habit of changing the game and the S3L looks to be a game changer.
For a full demonstration of the S3L visit Mediatech 2013 to see Robb Allen from Avid performing demos with it at the Segma stand (Avid SA distributor).